Description
Review of the Pyle 34 Inch Junior Acoustic Guitar Kit with Nylon Strings
This is a junior-scale nylon-string acoustic in a blue burst gloss finish, sold with a gig bag, capo, strap, spare nylon strings and picks. It is aimed at children, youth players and adults who want a small, soft-strung instrument for lessons or home practice rather than a full-size steel-string guitar.
Pros & Cons
- Nylon strings are far kinder to new fingertips. They sit at much lower tension than steel, so a beginner can practise for longer before the fingertips give out, which is the main reason children abandon guitar in the first month.
- The 22 inch scale length is published. That is a genuinely useful number, and it is short enough that a small hand can reach a first-position chord shape without the palm stretching.
- The kit covers the real gaps. A capo, a strap, a spare string set, three picks and a gig bag are all supplied, so nothing has to be sourced before the first lesson.
- 18 frets and a fixed bridge keep things simple. There is no tremolo to knock out of tune and no electronics to fail, which is the right level of complexity for a first instrument.
- The listing contradicts itself on the body wood. The description says linden wood throughout, while the specification table lists the body as basswood and the top and back as linden wood. These are different timbers and the published data does not settle which one the body is.
- The fingerboard material is described two ways. The description calls it dyed maple wood; the table records only “dyed wood”. Dyeing a pale timber to look like rosewood is a normal budget practice, but the species is not confirmed.
- The model code does not match the size. The item model number is PGACMS40BLU.5 while the product is a 34 inch guitar. The “40” in the code refers to a different size in the same family, which makes ordering the correct variant harder than it should be.
- No tuner is included. Nylon strings stretch a great deal when new and go out of tune constantly for the first week, so a tuner is needed immediately and is not in the box.
- Neck material is recorded only as “wood”. No species is given, so nothing can be said about stiffness or how the neck will hold its shape.
Detailed Product Description
The build is described as handcrafted all-wood, with a linden body, a birch headstock, protective binding on the body and back, and a linden laminate rosette. Linden is the European name for the same genus sold as basswood in North America, which may be the source of the disagreement in the data; even so, the table lists them as separate entries for separate parts.
The scale length is 22 inches against a total length of 34 inches and a body length of 16 inches. That combination puts it firmly in junior territory. A shorter scale means less string tension at pitch, which combines with the nylon strings to make this one of the easier acoustic instruments to fret.
There are 18 frets, which is standard for a classical-style neck and means the fingerboard stops at or near the body join. Nylon-strung necks are usually wider and flatter than steel-string necks, which suits fingerpicking and classical technique but can feel wide to a very small child. The bridge is fixed, with the strings tied at the bridge rather than held by pins, which is the normal nylon arrangement and takes practice to restring.
Hardware is a chrome three-per-side machine head set. Nylon strings need a rolled bar and open gears rather than sealed steel-string tuners, and the tuning ratio is what makes fine adjustment possible on strings this stretchy. Anyone deciding between this and a steel-strung instrument should read the nylon and steel string comparison first, because the two teach slightly different techniques.
What Comes with the Product
The listing states the set includes the guitar, a gig bag, a capo, a guitar strap, an extra nylon string set and three guitar picks.
Not included: a tuner, a stand, a cleaning cloth, a footstool, or any lesson material. The absence of a tuner is the significant one on a nylon-string instrument. It is also worth noting that a strap is supplied but nylon-string guitars of this type usually have only one strap button, at the tail, so the other end must be tied at the headstock.
Who It Suits
This suits a child taking early lessons, a youth player who finds steel strings painful, or an adult who wants a small nylon guitar to keep in a living room. It also suits someone learning classical or fingerstyle technique, where nylon is the correct string type from the start.
It suits less well an adult with large hands, who will find the junior body cramped, or a player who wants to strum pop songs with a pick, where steel strings project far better. Anyone who intends to plug in later should look elsewhere, since there is no pickup. Other sizes sit in kids and junior guitars and acoustic guitars.
How to Maintain
Keep it out of direct sun and away from heat sources. The gloss finish and thin laminate construction react to sudden temperature change more than the wood itself does.
Wipe the fingerboard and strings after playing. Nylon strings do not corrode, but the wound bass strings collect grime in the windings and go dull. Check the tie-block knots at the bridge occasionally; a slipping knot is the usual reason a nylon string suddenly drops in pitch. Store it in the supplied bag rather than leaning it against a wall.
Tips and Recommendations
Expect several days of constant retuning. Nylon stretches far more than steel and a fresh set can take a week to hold pitch. Stretching each string gently by hand after fitting speeds this up considerably.
Never fit steel strings to this guitar. A nylon-string instrument is braced for much lower tension and steel strings can pull the bridge off or bow the neck. Use the supplied capo to move chord shapes up the neck for singing in a comfortable key; the capo guide covers how to place one without pulling the strings sharp. Buy a clip-on tuner at the same time as the guitar.
Product FAQ
What is the body actually made of? The description says linden wood. The specification table says basswood for the body but linden for the top and back. The published data does not agree with itself.
What size player does 34 inches fit? It is a junior scale with a 22 inch scale length, aimed at children and small-framed players. The child guitar sizing guide gives the height ranges.
Can it be plugged into an amplifier? No. There is no pickup and no preamp fitted.
What comparable junior guitars are there? Similar options include the Pyle PGACLS30 30 inch kit, the Pyle 36 inch kit and the ADM 30 inch nylon string kit.
